


Shut up and Dance with me

by charliepoet13



Category: Fairy Tail
Genre: Dancing, F/M, Fluff, Loke showing off his sweet moves, Oneshot, jk he dances like a dad and we all know it
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-04
Updated: 2020-04-04
Packaged: 2021-02-28 20:09:47
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,564
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23482870
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/charliepoet13/pseuds/charliepoet13
Summary: Due to a favour Lucy is taking for Fairytail, she needs to brush up on her ballroom dancing. Thankfully her faithful lion spirit is here to help her practice.
Relationships: Lucy Heartfilia/Loke
Comments: 7
Kudos: 59





	Shut up and Dance with me

**Author's Note:**

> So yeah this idea popped into my head last night and I've spent all day rush writing it because it would not leave me be. The image of those two dancing together is cute though I must admit.

The ballroom was beautiful, just stepping into it, she was filled with a tense anticipation. Breathtaking artwork decorated the vast hall, stunning paintings, small statues and vases sown around the room to give it a regal edge. The floor seemed to shine and she was pretty sure she could eat off of it. But for all its majesty, she was currently alone. 

Despite their carefree attitude, it was important Fairytail kept at least a decent approval rating. If enough powerful people disproved of them then, saviours of the world or not, they could get closed down. She knew enough of the cutthroat world of the rich and powerful, so she supposed Makarov was right to ask her to go to this particular get together. The top elite were having a get together, a small party to discuss recent events and local happenings. To trade tips and tricks for getting out of sticky situations. All the while sharp tongued gossiping and dangerous deals were taking place behind everyone's backs. It promised to be a ‘fun’ time, but unless they wanted their guild to mysteriously ‘disappear’, it helped to shake the hand of a politician or two, corrupt or not. If she could get a few of the big wigs here to at least promise to ignore Fairytail from now on and let them be, then that could be considered a success. 

The only issue that she could see was that she was a little out of practice with the whole thing. Life in Fairytail wasn’t all daggers and hushed whispers, if someone had an issue with you, they’d say it outright. Fairytail also hadn’t suffered the type of betrayal inherent in upper class circles. Sure there was that thing with Laxus but these people knew how to twist the knife so hard your family would be feeling the sting for generations, so she was a little nervous.

Furthermore, she knew at some point there would be ballroom dancing to entertain the guests. She knew she would have to listen to someone bragging about building up their empire while she pretended to enjoy dancing with them. To do that she actually needed to dance somewhat gracefully without stepping on people’s toes. So, while the staff were elsewhere getting the finer points of tonight's event finished, she saw no harm in practising just a little. 

She relaxed before raising her arms, doing her best to imagine one hand on her partner’s shoulder, the other hand in theirs. It felt a little awkward but she carried on. Closing her eyes, to help her imagination along, she slowly started to glide along the hall. Her body moved on pure muscle memory, remembering the steps even if she couldn't quite recall everything. She started humming a small tune, doing her best to keep up with the rhythm.

She was startled out of her daydream by a second voice humming along with her. Apologies on her tongue she whipped around to face the newcomer...only to see Loke beaming at her. She sighed, annoyed at being watched, but relieved it was only him.

“What are you doing here?”

He shrugged, walking closer now she'd seen him, unperturbed by the fact he shouldn't probably have been watching her in the first place.

“Bored mostly, it’s been awhile since you summoned a spirit, so I just wanted to hang out and check up on you. We all worry you know?”

She had the decency to look sheepish, rubbing the back of her head as she responded.

“Ah, yeah, sorry about that, jobs have been really cut and dry lately. I didn't want to summon any of you needlessly”

He shook his head, understanding radiating from him.

“It’s fine Lucy. It means you’re safe and that’s the important thing. I was just wondering if you wanted some company, but if you’re busy dancing with ghosts then I can go”

She felt the blush on her cheeks, heating up her face. The memory of being caught stung, so she scrambled to explain.

“I’m just practising Loke. I’m doing a favour for Fairytail tonight and I want to be at the top of my game, even if that means remembering how to dance”

And remembering how to hold herself in a poised manner, perhaps Loke could be good for that? Could he flirt for ten minutes straight or so to test her patience? 

_Of course he could! this man could flirt with her for an hour and still have new material ready._

“Is it that important?”

“Yes, this needs to go off without a hitch, I can't let master or the guild down like that”

His expression turned thoughtful as he looked her over, brain racing about something. Unfortunately he’d reminded her of the pressure she was under, the dark smiles of the upper crust were terrifying. Losing herself in a dance had given her a brief reprieve, but now her nerves and worries were threatening to flood her again.

“Are you alright Lucy?”

“Fine, i just need to perfect this, I need to be able to act like a proper lady at all times”

She just stopped herself from flinching at the past events that phrase dug up, but it wasn’t enough to hide her discomfort from him. He paused, before beaming at her. 

“So how do you think you’re all going to dance princess? Something like this?”

He stood tall for a moment before shuffling his feet and tapping his left onto the floor. He kicked it back and forth, letting his heel tap the floor before switching on the balls of his feet to the other one. He was completely focused on his feet, letting his arms fall to his sides as he seemed to be trying to remember some...tap dancing?

“You can actually dance?”

She flustered, surprised by how rude she’d been, but he just snorted and waved her off.

“You’re forgetting how old I am Lucy, not that I mind that so much. Though it has been a hot minute or so since I last tap danced and I don’t really have the shoes for it”

It was a funny thought, him tap dancing on a stage, but not something she could actually imagine happening tonight.

“Tap dancing? In a ballroom?”

He did a few shuffles before doing a twirl and landing in an exaggerated ‘Ta-dah’ pose.

“You never know right?”

She laughed, completely blown away by his silliness. Unfortunately for her sanity, he took this as encouragement to continue. 

“Maybe something more like this?”

He switched up into what could only be described as a dad dance, swaying side to side while he twirled his arms. She was mortified on his behalf.

“Nooo Loke that’s-”

“Too cool? Yeah I know.” He grinned mischievously and she knew trouble was coming. He started hitting his fists together as he shook his hips. “What's this one again? The mashed potato?”

He was doing this on purpose! He could totally see he was embarrassing her, even if there was no one to witness them being silly, anyone could walk in.

“I take back what I said about you being able to dance”

“But Lucy” He was full on disco dancing now, tracing two fingers over his eyes as he did the Batusi, legs continuously moving. “This was all the range you know? If i’m dancing badly it’s only because of the moves humans taught me”

“We grew out of those for a reason”

“Nonsense” He started making like he was walking forwards but was sliding backwards as he did so. “You can't outgrow a dance! It’s expressing how you feel through movement”

Then what was he expressing? He was starting to do that silly dance he and Virgo did, was he expressing the fact he was eccentric? 

“Uh huh, well I’m just going to leave you to your dad dancing, see you”

He ran, sliding along the floor before stopping in front of her.

“Oh? Would you rather a dance like this?”

He swooped her up, hands tightly gripping her hips as he twirled her in the air, ignoring her yells. For a brief moment she was in the air, feeling it rush past her, hearing her heart pounding. It seemed like hours but was only seconds before he delicately lifted her down and into his arms, up against his chest. She gave herself a moment to calm down before glaring up at him.

“That was mean”

“That was dancing, mean would be if I tickled you. But I am sorry for surprising you, I just couldn’t resist dancing with you not just near you”

She huffed, calming down after her ordeal, she supposed it had been exhilarating. If he had just asked first she’d have trusted him enough to lift her! The thought surprised her for a moment, but then she realised it shouldn’t. After all they'd been through, she could trust him not to drop her, he'd never do that anyway, not even as a bad joke. He did apologise too....fine just this once she’d let him off. Those dance moves couldn’t be forgiven though.

“What? Do you need someone with class to teach you some actual moves?”

He sucked in a breath, faking hurt but clearly amused, if the sparkle in his eyes was anything to go by.

“Ouch, you wound me princess. Fair enough though, enough playing, allow me the honour of dancing with you and I will give it my all”

His smile never disappeared, instead became more serious, he really intended to dance with her huh? Well could she really say no to that? It might be fun...and she might spend more time pressed up against his chest.

Mentally shaking herself for thinking that, she nodded to him.

“Alright, show me what you’ve got Loke”

“Thank you Lucy, please follow my lead”

He took one of her hands in his, the other moving her hand to his shoulder before resting it on her hip. She figured he was going to start swaying until he stretched their arms out, he tilted his head to the right, signalling the direction he wanted them to go. He mouthed a quick one, two, three and they were off.

She struggled at first but quickly learnt to follow his lead as they quickstepped around the ballroom, twirling around as they did so. She felt a grin overtake her as they moved as one, adrenaline pumping through her veins. Moving to a song only he could hear, he directed them through the room, matching her grin with his own. Suddenly his hand moved from her hip to her back as they slowed them down to gently dip her. Her arms instinctively moved to wrap around his neck, gaining support from him. She looked up at him, both of them taking a quick second to breathe.

“Warmed up yet? We’re just getting started”

She snorted, shaking her head.

“If you’re trying to sweep me off my feet don’t you need a rose or something?”

He laughed, softly righting her back up. They let go of each other so he could back off. With a snap of his fingers a rose was in his hand.

“As the lady wishes”

He placed the rose between his teeth, waggling his eyebrows at her. He was quite a sight, amusement bubbled up inside her, escaping as she giggled, taking his hand once offered to her.

He pulled her flush against him, returning to their previous positions, though much closer. He tilted his head once more and led her back down the hall in something resembling a tango. Resembling since she found it a little tricky to keep her feet out of the way of his but she didn’t trip so there was that. Once they had gone far enough for him, he once more dipped her, trying to look as sexy as possible with a rose in his mouth. Snorting, she removed one of her arms from his shoulders, trusting him to hold her up. She gently took the rose from his mouth, pretending to sniff it.

“Why how lovely Mr Loke, I’m thoroughly swept off my feet”

“I’m so glad my lady, I live to please you”

He beamed at her, pulling her back up to stand. He took her free hand and slowly swirled her around before letting go wrapping his arm around her waist and tugging her to him, her back against his chest. He gently started swaying them side to side, resting his head on her shoulder and humming a soft song. She allowed him the moment, so pleasant a moment it was. When she finally spoke it was a whisper.

“I definitely think you’re mixing your dances around”

“Perhaps, but I was expressing my love and support for you through a medium, so any dance is fine”

“I’m not quite sure that’s right. Also, I’m pretty sure this isn’t the right dance”

He sighed, a puff of air brushing against her neck.

“I know, but that type of ballroom dancing can be a bit boring”

“Boring or not, I have to practice”

He groaned dramatically before letting her go, allowing her to turn and face him. She held out his rose, catching him off guard and causing him to raise an eyebrow in confusion.

“Don’t get me wrong, I want this, but I can't do this with it. Could you please keep it safe for me?”

He relaxed, a smile returning as he took it from her, magic sending it away in a burst of gold.

“I’ll return it to you later”

“Of course, so shall we begin?”

Dramatic spirit he was, he bowed low, holding out a hand for her.

“My dearest lady, would you do me the greatest honour of dancing with me?”

She rolled her eyes, taking his hand anyway.

“My, kind sir, the honour is mine”

He bit his lip to keep in his chuckles as he straightened up. They returned to what was becoming a now familiar pose, his hand on her hip actually starting to feel nice, something comforting.

She relaxed as they slowly swayed in place, stepping together in time. She could actually feel her confidence growing as they moved back and forth, side to side, managing to keep herself in time with him. It didn’t seem like he was too worried about stepping on her feet, his focus was solely on her and she could feel his gaze burning into her. Well if he was tired of a slow dance, she could make it more interesting for him and for her. 

She let go of his hand, ignoring his pout to wrap both arms around his neck, resting on his shoulders. She laid her head just under his, allowing herself to rest against him as she moved. He was startled for a moment before replying in kind, moving his arms to hold her waist. He hummed close to her ear, sending a small shiver through her body.

“I get the feeling this isn’t quite right Lucy”

“No, but we’ve done it properly for a bit, we’ve earned a small break”

He paused, tilting his head to think things through, before he smirked, playfulness springing up in him.

“Ya know, I’ve changed my mind, this isn’t so boring after all”

“Maybe you just never had the right partner, I’m pretty good you know?”

It was meant to be a little egotistical, a joke, but he actually thought it over.

“...Maybe not”

They fell into a peaceful silence, dancing to a soothing tune they could now both imagine. As they swayed he closed his eyes, leaning his head against hers as he relaxed into her. After a moment, he gently nuzzled her cheek, enjoying the smile he pulled from her.

“I’ve changed my mind again, you’re a great dancer, this is so peaceful”

She was being honest. They couldn’t for obvious reasons, but if they could, she felt she would stay forever in this moment with him. All her nerves rolled off her shoulders as he lulled her into a sense of calm. He was really too good at this for his own good.

“Hmmm, it is, do you feel better about tonight?”

Tonight?...Oh the favour she was doing! He’d turned her brain so fuzzy she’d forgotten! But perhaps that was a good thing. Without any worry or panic this had all come so easily to her, she should thank him.

“I do, thanks to you”

“Nah I didn’t do anything, I just kept you company. You’re a great dancer and I know you can act all prim and proper with the best of them, so don’t panic”

She wouldn’t, not now, but she knew she’d feel better if he was there. Well, it never hurt to ask right?

“I won’t but…I’m allowed to bring a guest. Obviously a lot of my team are a bit too eccentric for a place like this, but if you wanted to then…”

She broke off, not feeling brave enough to go through with the question. Thankfully, he was eager to answer her anyway. 

“I would love to go as your date Lucy, I’m sure we’ll make a really good impression.”

“We’re not dating!”

He quirked an eyebrow, disbelieving.

“Right, because you slow dance this closely with all your platonic friends”

She floundered, almost tripping, almost pushing him away in denial. Instead she shoved her face into his chest, ignoring his laughter and doing her best to hide her red cheeks.

“You’re uninvited” 

“Lucy, we both know that’s nothing more than an empty threat. Besides, I want to dance with you all night, so I would like the chance to, if that’s ok?”

“...You can't anyway. We have to engage with the other guests and leave a good impression. I’m sorry but other men are probably going to want to dance with me...potentially even flirt with me. I won’t invite you if you’re going to get jealous”

He pouted, clearly not happy with that response. His grip on her tightened for a moment and she briefly wondered if he actually was jealous. He sighed, letting out all his pent up annoyance and loosening his hold on her.

“I won’t get jealous, but if anyone doesn’t take no for an answer I get to make some not so loosely veiled threats. I won’t have anyone becoming a danger to you, regardless of whether they could shut down Fairytail or not and that’s final on that”

She got the vague feeling she was going to regret this invitation, like he was slowly becoming more trouble than he’s worth.

“Make it an extremely veiled, subtle, threat and you have a deal. If you’re clever enough that your words could be taken as either a compliment or an insult he can't really do anything without seeming petty or foolish”

“Deal. Also, Lucy, I know you’ll dance with everyone else tonight....but save the last dance for me?”

She backed off slightly so they could properly look at each other. He seemed surprisingly vulnerable, uncomfortable in his own skin. Well, she couldn’t have that.

“Of course Loke, after all-” She leaned in close to whisper in his ear. “-You’ll be the one taking me home”

She took a step back, admiring her handiwork. He was standing there, gaping like a fish, his own cheeks now heating up as her response caused him to shut down. It was kinda sweet, how he could be romantic, but romantic gestures aimed at him would knock him off his feet. His loud, over the top gestures were very good at covering up the fact he just wanted to be cuddled and loved, but didn’t think he would ever get such things. He really was too casual and fun loving for such a stiff atmosphere, she felt a little bad and selfish for inviting him. Perhaps a little fun beforehand wouldn’t hurt?

“Right, how about to cool off and cool down, we do some more fun dances. What were those moves you were doing earlier?”

To her own embarrassment, she started to shake her hips, moving her arms up and down a little erratically. He looked her over before beaming widely. He bounced his way over, hip bopping her once he came to a stop beside her.

“No, no Lucy, the twist is like this” He started to sway his hips and shake his arms up and down in a matching rhythm. “Feel free to throw in one of these too” He lifted his left leg, twisting it around as he still shook his hips. 

Inside she was a mixture of mortified and joyful, but she dutifully copied him, as they danced side by side together. 

He made it his mission to teach her as many silly dances as he could before they were caught by staff and thrown out. It may not have been the most productive way she could have spent her time, but it was definitely the most fun she’d had in a while, when she learnt to let go and have fun. Even if that meant doing the swim opposite Loke, who was doing a move he called the monkey?

However, most importantly, she felt more confident about tonight, much less shaky then when she had walked into the ballroom. With Loke at her side, they were going to knock em dead!

**Author's Note:**

> It was nice to write a oneshot again, especially something so cute. I hope you enjoyed!


End file.
